Letters: Think before you bomb, Mr. President

LAGUNA WOODS, Wilfred Cohen: I am not a supporter of President Barack Obama, but I

British rally protests a war in Syria (AP Photo)

find myself in sympathy with him for the dilemma (although it is one of his doing) that he finds himself in for waiting so long to act in Syria [“Carnage may be turning point,” News, Aug. 27].

If he helps the rebels depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Syria will most certainly fall into the hands al-Qaida, Hezbollah, Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, the results of which would be catastrophic for the Middle East and for the Western world.

If Obama helps Assad retain power, Syria will be under Iran's influence, which constantly expresses its hatred for America. Russia supports Iran, which is a strong supporter of Assad.

Russia also seems intent to re-start the Cold War with America so it may become a major player in the Middle East – a scenario that does not bode well for the Western world, especially under the leadership we now have.

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LAGUNA NIGUEL, Gordon Wilson: I would agree with Secretary of State John Kerry that if anything at all counts as “moral obscenity” it should certainly be Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons [“Kerry: Chemical weapon was clearly used,” News, Aug. 27]. Chemical warfare disrupts lives, creates anguish and pleads for zero tolerance from any country, like ours, which claims to be at least half civilized.

But I am baffled about why we are so relatively tolerant of other “obscenities” sent our way, compliments of our own government. And why are Kerry and gang so relatively quiet on these matters?

The list is long, but a few items that come readily to mind are our steady usage of drones; National Security Agency secrecy; Draconian punishment of whistle-blowers; frequent incarceration of non-criminals, and our relentless and cruel “drug wars.” Perhaps, the U.S. needs to buy itself a big mirror before becoming entrenched in yet another war.

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ANAHEIM, Al Craig: Remember, in Syria we are siding with people who have links to al-Qaida. Our government seems to alternate between calling them “terrorists” (when they bomb Israel or the U.S.) or “freedom fighters” (when they help regime change). A YouTube video of rebels burning captured Assad supporters alive and forcing fathers to drive suicide bomb cars by threatening to kill their families does little to inspire faith in them or the stories they tell.

With Russia invested in Syria, and having provided it with arms in return for a naval base, this will not end well – especially with China now supporting Russia over this. There will be no U.N. sanction and without Syria actually threatening us, an invasion is illegal under international law.

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HUNTINGTON BEACH, Harold Bradford: Here we go again. This time the excuse for intervening in Syria is that chemical weapons were used, which killed civilians including children.

So what? How many thousands of Iraqi civilians, including children have been killed by car bombs this year? We were there for how many years and suffered how many dead and wounded before we quit, accomplishing nothing?

How many civilians, including children, have been killed in Afghanistan in the years we have been there, losing even more lives and having more Americans wounded? Again we quit. We are losers after accomplishing nothing. Is there one citizen of either of these countries who has any respect for or trust in the U.S.? There shouldn't be. We haven't properly executed a war since we flattened Japan.

Since then we have gone only halfway into Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan and tried to win wars by using a plan called “winning the hearts and minds of the people” instead of by obliterating our enemies.

In each case we quit, leaving a combined 400,000-plus dead and wounded and billions of dollars. In the case of South Vietnam, we left citizens who trusted and depended on us to be enslaved by communists.

One thing we should be able to figure out is that no matter who wins in Syria, the people will despise us just like the citizens of other Muslim countries do.

We have lost the will it takes to win wars so we should stay out of them, especially in cases such as this civil war, which is none of our business.

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IRVINE, John Jaeger: How long must President Bashar al-Assad keep killing Syrians with weapons of mass destruction that came from Syria before Democrats get a clue about how dishonest and unfair they were to President George W. Bush?

Ten years of malicious attacks by Democrats have come full circle, and now the answer to “Where are Saddam Hussein's WMDs?” has been definitively answered before the whole world. Syria is the answer.

Syria. Just as Iraqi general Georges Sada said in his book, “Saddam's Secrets.”

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San Clemente, Richard Green: If anyone in this government of ours wants to attack Syria, he or she had better get a tax increase first to pay for it. I don't want much-needed U.S. programs to take more cuts so that military action of unknown goals and results can be launched.

House Speaker John Boehner said he wants firm disengagement plans, how about firm plans to pay for it first? Better yet, why not get the Arab countries and Israel to pay for intervention using the arms and money we have provided them for decades?

It's their neighborhood, not ours.

Forced compliance

ORANGE, N.J. Brunner: We see no unions, senators, representatives or the staff of Congress members who wish to be on Obamacare. Isn't it funny that these are the same people, in many cases, who passed this law for their constituents?

So far, only half of my doctors have retired, and the rest are waiting to see how bad it can get. Why didn't the president start with the 15 percent that did not have insurance rather than to alter 100 percent who had it, which left 85 percent with a huge reading assignment and the responsibility to figure out how badly the bulk of the population got messed up?

If everyone is forced to accept Obamacare, I'm sure we could figure out how to survive, but I beleive we all must do it or none of us.

What is your choice?

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MISSION VIEJO, John Rette: David Dary's book, “The Oregon Trail: An American Saga,” identifies federally owned and operated fur-trade operations, as the first industry in the United States to be subsidized by the government.

He says that the system did not work well. Poor management, less-qualified employees than the private sector and poor quality were typical characteristics of the system. The Indians also refused to work with them.

Was this evidence of the wrong direction our country would continue to take, resulting in ineffective, intrusive big government?

Obamacare, which Congress itself declines to participate in, will be the epitome of misdirected government.

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